The queen was recently diagnosed with pneumonia.
Kate Middleton joined friends, family and 1,600 other guests at her annual Together At Christmas service at Westminster Abbey on December 6. Alongside her husband Prince William and their children, Princes George and Louis and Princess Charlotte, other royals including Zara Tindall and Princess Beatrice appeared in their most festive attire – a velvet trouser suit for Tindall and a maroon maternity look for Beatrice. However, two very important royal figures were missing in action at Friday’s event: King Charles and Queen Camilla.
According to People, there is no official explanation from the palace as to why the monarchs stayed away from the concert. However, the newspaper writes that the King probably didn’t want to overshadow Middleton on her big day. Charles and Camilla were also absent from last year’s event; the King had an earlier engagement at his Highgrove Estate in Gloucestershire at the time.
However, King Charles was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year and continued to perform his royal duties during his battle. Meanwhile, Queen Camilla also suffered from a persistent chest infection, which was later diagnosed as pneumonia. While the Queen continued to work during her illness, she also kept a low profile and skipped some events.
On December 5, Camilla attended a Women’s Aid 50th anniversary event where she spoke to survivors of domestic violence. During the appearance, Camilla admitted to feeling a little drained in light of her health problems. “I’m still a bit tired. It’s catching up with me a bit,” she told representatives of the organization.
Camilla’s friends recently told The Daily Beast. that they were worried the Queen was doing too much and not taking time to recover. “We’re all very worried that this has happened,” one source said of her pneumonia diagnosis. “Thank goodness she seems to have recovered. Camilla now needs to rest and recover over Christmas and I just hope she and the King are driven to church on Christmas Day when it’s cold!”
